David Stutler and the Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry
by TheOriginalSnapespeare
Summary: While Veronica and Balthazar leave for a three year sabbatical, then entrust Dave's magic training to an old friend. Albus Dumbledore gladly agreed to host the Prime-Merlinian while his friends are away. Story begins during Harry's third year at Hogwarts.
1. Chapter 1

"Aren't you a little bit old for Hogwarts?" Twenty-one year old David Stutler glanced up from the window he'd been staring out of. Standing in the doorway of his train compartment was a girl about thirteen years old. She had long wavy blonde hair and was already dressed in the standard Hogwarts uniform; a knee-length black skirt, A white cotton button up shirt, knee-high socks, and a type of shoe Dave's girlfriend, Becky, referred to once as 'Mary-Janes". "I'm sorry that was a bit rude wasn't it?" The girl frowned as her sing-song British accent filled the compartment.

"No it's alright." Dave tried to assure her. "I _am_ technically too old for Hogwarts."

"Oh, you're American?" The girl said clearly surprised. "That explains it then. You education system must be different than ours. Do you mind if I join you in here? Most of the other compartments are filled up."

"No please, be my guest." Dave invited her inside and insisted she let him put her trunk in the overhead rack for her.

"Thank you!" She said pulling a tie and a cardigan out of her trunk before sitting down and wrapping herself in the Grey and Blue cardigan.

"I'm Dave by the way." The young sorcerer said extending a hand to her.

"I'm sorry I'm being rude again!" The girl remarked as she looked up from her half-tied necktie. Reaching forward the girl shook Dave's hand. "I'm Valarie Cooper." She introduced. "I'm sorry, I'm so frazzled this morning. I overslept and my dad had to take some extra time out of work to bring me to the platform." She continued to fuss with her necktie as she rambled. "So what brings you to Hogwarts?"

* * *

_"Veronica? Balthazar?" Dave yelled for his sorcerer mentors as he entered the lab._

_"Balthazar, David's home!" Veronica called from the center of the lab to the couple's makeshift bedroom. Balthazar emerged from the other room with an owl perched on his arm. By this point in their friendship Dave had stopped being surprised by his master's unusual antics. _

_"Why does he have an owl?" The apprentice asked Veronica. _

_"I'll let him tell you himself." She smiled. _

_"Dave, Veronica and I..."_

_"You getting married?" Dave joked. Over the past year every time Balthazar had started his sentence with 'Veronica and I', Dave would consistently interrupt with the suggestion. _

_"Actually, yes." Balthazar replied smoothly before stroking the bird on his arm. _

_"Wait seriously?" He grinned._

_"Seriously." Veronica confirmed. _

_"That's great news! Congratulations! I can't wait to tell Becky. We've sort of had a bet going." Dave admitted earning him a look from Balthazar. "Which I probably shouldn't have told you." Dave recoiled. "But that doesn't explain the owl..."_

* * *

"My Uncle, whom I live with, got married recently." Dave explained to Valarie as the Hogwarts Express began to pull out of the station.

"He sent you away because he got married? That's horrible." Valarie said sympathetically.

"Well it's not really like that." Dave clarified.

* * *

_"I'm using it to send a message to an old friend." Balthazar told him. "When a sorcerer is married, it's traditional that the couple live away from their families for three years."_

_"You're moving out?" Dave said a little too hopefully. Maybe if Balthazar moved out of the lab, Dave would finally have more time to spend with Becky. _

_"It's more than that David." Veronica spoke. "We'll be out of New York City on a sabbatical for three years." _

_"B-but..you can't go." Dave pouted._

* * *

"I'm not a wizard." Dave confessed. Balthazar and Veronica had told him it would be alright for him to tell his fellow students that he was a sorcerer, but they warned him to keep his Prime-Merlinian identity secret. "I'm actually, a sorcerer, so is my Uncle Balthazar and my Aunt Veronica. Well she's a sorceress technically." From what Balthazar and Veronica had said the witches and wizards of Hogwarts would have trouble enough understanding what a sorcerer was, let alone his and Baltahzar's master-apprentice relationship. Not that Dave had minded, he'd secretly enjoyed referring to Balthazar and Veronica as his Aunt and Uncle. They_ were_ family to him and Becky.

* * *

_"We don't want to leave you either." Balthazar assured him. "You still have so much to learn." Dave rolled his eyes, it was always about sorcery with him._

_"Don't worry about me." Dave waved an arm indifferently. "You two deserve some time off. You've been apart for what? A thousand years? You should be together on your...sabbatical." _

_"You're not just saying this because you're trying to get out of practicing your sorcery?" Balthazar accused. _

_"What? Me? No way." Dave shook his head._

_"Very well. Then you'll be quite excited to hear I've found a place for you to study your magic while we're away."_

_"Um...yeah! Yeah."_

* * *

"What's the difference between a Sorcerer and a wizard?" Valarie asked leaning forward.

"Well, a sorcerer or a sorceress can do a lot of the same magic that a witch or wizard can do. The main difference, is that where you would use a wand to cast your magic, sorcerers usually use a ring." Dave dug in his front jeans pocket and produced his Dragon ring.

"Are all sorcerer's rings this...beautiful?" Valarie asked studying the dragon in his hand.

"My Aunt Veronica's is pretty nice." Dave told her before slipping the ring back in his pocket.

"Have you seen a wand yet?" Valarie asked excitedly.

* * *

_"A wand, a cauldron, uniforms, ridiculously long list of spell books. Ohkay...where do we start?" Dave asked Balthazar and Veronica as he looked up from his Hogwarts supplies list. The three sorcerers were standing in the center of Diagon Alley two days before Dave would be leaving for his new school. He wished desperately that Becky could have come with them, But Diagon Alley had a very strict magical beings only policy. _

_"You won't need a wand Dave." Balthazar reminded him. Dave knew that, but he still thought it would be cool to see a real working wand up close. _

_"Let's take him for his uniform first." Veronica suggested. "That way they can have his robes fitted while we gather everything else."_

_"Yes!" Dave agreed. "Let's get all of the clothing stuff out of the way first."_

* * *

Digging through her trunk once more, Valarie found her wand and handed it to Dave. Taking it gently, Dave studied the carvings that wound up and down the want.

"For witches and wizards, every piece of your wand is symbolic." Valarie explained. "The leaf and vine carvings are suppose to symbolize strength and stability. The wand its self, is carved of reed. This wood is for Witches and Wizards who are bold. The core, which helps a witch or wizard project their magic, is unicorn tale hair. Unicorn hair makes for the most faithful of wand cores and they produce the most consistent magic."

"That's a lot of information to come from a stick." Dave handed the wand back astonished.

"It's a lot to live up to too." Valarie agreed putting her wand way.

"I guess a sorcerer's ring is similar." Dave said thinking back to some information Becky had come across when she was working on a geology project for one of her elective classes. "My girlfriend Becky told me once that the emerald, she said that's what the green stone on my ring was, anyway emeralds apparently represent hope. It's the stone of prophecy. Talk about a lot to live up to."

"Did your old school have houses?" Valarie asked suddenly.

"Houses like buildings?"

"No!" The blonde snorted in an attempt not to laugh. "Here at Hogwarts every first year student is sorted into a house. Each house represents specific qualities. There's Gryffindor, Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. Gryffindors are meant to be brave and quick to act. Slytherins are cunning and ambitious, they're also mostly purebloods..."

"Wait wait what's that mean? Pureblood?" The apprentice was lost.

"It's not important for what we're talking about." Valerie tried to wave it off but she could see her new friend would not be so easily deterred. "I'll explain some other time." Valerie assured him. "For now you want to get through the sorting."

"What's so important about the sorting?" Dave asked, leaning forward.

"Your house and your housemates are pretty much your life while you're here." Valarie clarified. "The dorms where students sleep are divided up by houses. If you do well or misbehave in a class your professors can give or remove points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points wins the house cup. You've got a lot to learn before we get to Hogwarts."

"Apparently." Dave groaned.


	2. Chapter 2

"So what about the other houses...Jigglypuff and Ravenpaw?"

"_Huffle_puffand Raven_claw_." Valarie corrected. "Hufflepuffs are known for being just and loyal. and Ravenclaws, that's my house, we're supposed to be wise and intelligent."

"So how exactly do they decide which house you belong in?" Dave quizzed. He imagined there being some sort of skills test like the one's he'd taken to get into his classes at NYU.

"I can't tell you." Valarie shook her head. "It's suppose to be a surprise for first year students, even though you're not a first year, I think the same rule applies to transfers."

"Is it hard?"

"It's a test made for eleven year olds. How hard do you think it is?" Valarie reminded him.

"Good point." Dave leaned back, visibly relaxed. As their conversation died down, Dave's thoughts turned to Becky.

* * *

_"Hello? Anyone home?" Becky's voice echoed through the lab within an hour of Balthazar and Veronica telling Dave they were going away. "Hey, guys I brought some of those Crepes everyone loved when we stopped at that Bakery a few weeks ago." She continued talking over a stack of Styrofoam containers as she descended the stairs. "There's double chocolate for Veronica, Strawberry smothered for Balthaz...Why does everyone look so serious?" Becky said looking up from her leaning tower of food. Dave rushed forward to lighten the load, but neither he nor the other sorcerers answered her right away. "What's going on you guys?" She repeated this time her voice more concerned. _

_"Rebecca , we're going away." Balthazar told her softly._

_"Oh." She smiled, not really understanding why everyone was so upset that the four of them would be leaving the city for awhile. It's not like it had always been their home. _

_"Let me explain." Dave frowned." When Balthazar says 'We're going away." he doesn't mean all of us." Dave then continued to explain to his girlfriend how Balthazar and Veronica were getting married and that meant they had to leave for three years. With the help of his master, he then managed to tell her how he'd himself would be leaving for three years to study at Hogwarts. _

_All things considered, Becky handled the information rather well. Both she and Dave had graduated from NYU last Spring so neither of them would have to worry about missing classes. It had been her suggestion that she and Dave move their things out of the apartment they'd shared, and even went as far as volunteering to live in the lab to make sure everything was maintained and safe while the sorcerers were away. _

_"Rebecca you don't have to do all that!" Veronica had insisted._

_"I know, but who else can we trust with Dave's experimental equipment and all you guys' sorcery...things. Honestly, I've suggested to Dave a few times already that we should just move in here since we're hardly ever home." Becky assured her. "Of course we both agreed that you two needed your privacy...but, look I don't mind. The Lab is closer to work than our apartment anyways." _

_"It's settled then." Balthazar said clapping his hands together. "Dave..."_

* * *

"Dave? David!" Dave opened his eyes to see Valarie speaking his name and gently attempting to shake him awake. Rubbing his sore shoulder, Dave sat up, taking his height off the window he'd been leaning against.

"I didn't even realize I'd fallen asleep." Dave groaned.

"I'm sorry, I would have let you sleep, but we'll be nearing Hogwarts soon. You'll need to get into your uniform."

"No, that's cool. Thanks for looking out for me." Dave stretched his arms above his head before retrieving his uniform pieces from his trunk. "Is there ah...a bathroom on this thing?"

"Oh yes, sorry." Valarie apologized not realizing she'd withheld the information. "Once you're out of the compartment, just go left, the same way you came in, and you'll find it at the end of the car."

"Thank you!" Dave replied before dashing out of the compartment. He returned moments later with his civilian clothes in hand. "How do I look? Am I wearing everything right?" Valarie doubted anyone could wear the Hogwarts uniform incorrectly, but she glanced over the young sorcerer all the same. Dave was wearing the typical Hogwarts button up shirt and black slacks but Valarie noticed he'd chosen a black sweater vest over the more common long sleeved sweater option. As a new student his sweater did not yet have a house crest nor did his tie have colored house indicating stripes.

"It suits you." She appraised at last.

"Are you sure? I noticed most of the kids wear the long sleeve sweater do you think I should..."

"I get the impression the sweater vest is more you." Valarie assured him. "Where did you get those shoes though?" Valarie's face twisted. "I think my dad has a pair like that." She pointed to Dave's expensive, but painful looking pointy brown shoes.

"Yeah...they were a gift from my uncle." Dave admitted embarrassed. He'd been wearing those shoes for so long, he'd almost forgotten his initial dislike towards them. "He says rubber soles block my magic."

"That's interesting." Valarie said as Dave stuffed his street clothes into his trunk. "Does your Aunt wear them too?"

"Not exactly like this." Dave said sitting down again. "Hers are more stylish, and probably more comfortable."

"Not if they're heels." Valarie disagreed. Dave was going to tell his new friend that Becky had once told him the same thing, when the Hogwarts Express pulled into its station. "Don't worry about your things," Valarie instructed as the train came to a stop. "The school's staff will make sure everything ends up where it's suppose to. I've to take the carriages in with the second year and up students. Since you have to be sorted, you're probably needed with the first years. See that man over there?" Dave followed where she'd pointed to find a man who must have stood at least ten feet tall. "That's Hagrid. He's the gamekeeper and the one who guides the first years to Hogwarts. I'm sure I'll see you later." Valarie smiled before leaving Dave standing alone on the platform.

* * *

**A/N: Thank you so much to Lisa602 for this story's first review! I'm not really sure where I'm going with this story yet, so I too and excited to see what's in store for Dave! A thank you to everyone who's favorited/followed this story! Please continued reading, reviewing, and enjoying! **


	3. Chapter 3

Mesmerized by Hagrid who was obviously a Giant, or Half-Giant at least, Dave walked towards him and the group of eleven year olds that had already formed around the man.

"Um, Excuse me?" Dave yelled up at the tallest man he'd likely come across.

"What? Oh 'ello!" The Hagrid's low voice reached down to Dave. "Who might you be?"

" I'm David Stutler!" Dave told the Half-Giant. "I'm the transfer student."

"Transfer you say? " Hagrid turned up from Dave to study a list in his hand. "Yup yer on the list. Yeh can ride with me." Hagrid indicated a boat that was sizably larger than the others. Once a handful more first year students had joined them Hagrid and Dave put their boat in the water leading a small fleet towards Hogwarts.

"Is that Hogwarts?" Dave gasped as a elaborate castle came into view. The Hogwarts castle was like nothing Dave had ever seen. It was larger than anything he'd seen in history books or museums and more spectacular than King Arthur's Castle sketches shown in the Encantus. Though he decided then and there never to mention that opinion to Veronica or Balthazar.

"Aye that's the place." Hagrid nodded. "Head's down!" Hagrid warmed the other boats as they neared the cliff Hogwarts was settled on. Dave ducked his head down as far as he could manage as the boat transported him through a curtain of ivory and into an stone tunnel. Hagrid rowed the boat skillfully through the tunnel, which seemed to be taking them directly under the castle. The tunnel eventually led to a sort of underground harbor where, once their larger boat was secured, Hagrid told Dave it was alright to get out. Doing as he was told, Dave clambered out of the boat and waited at the only door in the underground cavern. Once all the first years had been reunited again, Hagrid knocked three times on the door and waited. Within seconds the door swung open to reveal a tall black haired witch in robes nearly the same shade of green as Dave's dragon ring.

"The firs' years Professor McGonagall." Hagrid said before handing her the list Dave had seen earlier.

"Thank you Hagrid." Professor McGonagall replied, her lips pulled tightly together, giving Dave the impression she was a strict professor. "Follow me." She instructed to the group of students before swinging the door wide open. Dave felt like a Giant himself following after the eleven year olds', whose heads barely reached his waist. The interior of Hogwarts was possibly more spectacular than the exterior. The Entrance Hall, which Professor McGonagall was currently leading the students through, had polished stone floors and an amazing stone staircase. Not so amazing, was when Professor McGonagall crammed Dave and the first years into a small room low lit room.

"Welcome to Hogwarts." Professor McGonagall addressed the group in an accent Dave supposed was Scottish. "The start of term banquet will begin shortly, but before you take your seats in the Great Hall, you will be sorted into your houses. The sorting id a very important ceremony because while you are here your house will be like your family within a Hogwarts. You will have classes with the rest of your house, sleep in your house dormitory and spend free time in your house common room." Although Dave had heard most of this from Valarie on the train ride, he was listening to Professor McGonagall intently. Like Balthazar, she had a voice that could command a room without having to raise her voice. "The four houses are called Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each house had its own noble history and each has produced outstanding witches and wizards. While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your house points, while any rule breaking will lose house points. At the end of the year, the house with the most points is awarded the house cup, a great honor. I hope each of you will be a credit to whichever house becomes yours. The Sorting Ceremony will take place in a few minutes in front of the rest of the school. I suggest you all smarten yourselves up as much as you can while you can while you are waiting. Now which of you is our transfer student, Mr. David Stutler?"

"That would be me." Dave answered raising his hand. He noticed the shocked expressions of the first year's faces when they heard him talking for the first time.

"Mr. Stutler, you will be sorted after our first year students. Please wait here after I return for our younger students."

"Sure thing Professor." Dave nodded. Satisfied with his answer, Professor McGonagall exited the room. The second she disappeared, the first year students began speculating about what the sorting ceremony could be. After several minutes of listening to the kids' assumptions Professor McGonagall returned to collect the first years. Now that the room had been emptied of all its other occupants Dave located a bench on the other side of the room. He seized the opportunity and waited for Professor McGonagall to return. From the other side of the door Dave could hear burst of cheering and applause followed by short spans of silence. Whatever the sorting ceremony was, Dave was glad it was at least exciting.

"Mr. Stutler," Professor McGonagall called for him as she returned to the small room. "We're ready for you." Taking a deep breath, Dave rose to his feet and followed after the stern looking woman. Dave was in awe once more when he first laid eyes on the Great Hall. To the left of the door he'd just entered was a long table where the Hogwarts staff was seated. Many of them were eyes Dave with interested expressions. To his right Dave could see four long, color coded tables that he assumed were to dived the students among their houses. Set in the center of the Great Hall was a stool with a tattered looking witches hat set upon it. Professor McGonagall marched forward and stood by the stool. "David, Stutler." She bellowed to the hall, giving Dave the impression he was supposed to join her by the stool. "Please sit Mr. Stutler." Professor McGonagall instructed. Dave did as he was told and Professor McGongagall set the hat on his head.

_"A sorcerer ay?"_ An unfamiliar voice filled Dave's head. "_I'm the sorting hat and I may not be shiny and new, but I know the difference between a sorcerer and a wizard."_

_"I'm sorry."_ Dave thought. _"I was sent here to learn magic."_ Dave tried to explain.

_"Fear not David, I know what brings you here. It is not my position to turn you away._" The hat assured him._"My only purpose is to find the house you'd best be suited to. Now as Prime-Merlinian there's bravery for sure...But Hufflepuff may suit you for your loyalty...However It's knowledge that you hold above all and for this my choice must be..._RAVECLAW!" The sorting hat's voice echoed through the Great Hall. Professor McGonagall pointed out the Ravenclaw table to Dave, and as he neared, he was able to see Valarie waving him over.

* * *

**A/N: This is the first chapter without flashbacks, but is still decided to use italics & bold for thoughts. I think I keep this format from now on. Thank you to SkyDragonAzure, I tried hard to think How established characters like Dave or Balthazar would respond, so I am pleased that my efforts shine through here! Thank you also to Penguin Lord 0029 for your review of Chapter 2! I'd love to know what you think of Dave being a Ravenclaw. A huge thank you to everyone who had favorited/followed this story! I absolutely love reviews because they genuinely inspire me! So thank you everyone and please continue reading, reviewing and enjoying! **


	4. Chapter 4

"Welcome to Ravenclaw." Valarie smiled as Dave sat down next her. "I saved you a seat just in case you were sorted into Ravenclaw."

"So that hat..." Dave started to ask but all conversation around the Great Hall has slowly died out. A tall man with half-mooned spectacles, long silver hair, and a long silver braided beard stepped up to a podium that had replaced the sorting hat and stool.

"That's Professor Dumbledore, he's the headmaster." Valarie whispered.

* * *

_"Whoa, why is there an owl in here?" Becky jumped as she spotted the bird of prey for the first time. _

_"I keep asking Balthazar," Dave said biting into a crepe. "He just told me he's using it to send a message to an old friend."_

_"Wizards, like the ones you'll be going to school with David," Veronica began to explain. "they use owls as their form of postal service." _

_"Huh. That seems...time consuming. Who trains all these owls to do that? What happens if they get lost? Have they even eaten someone's mail?"_

_"Dave..." Balthazar groaned. He may have a soft spot for the young boy, but there was certainly such a thing as too many questions. _

_"What's your friend like?" Becky asked trying to change the subject. She could only hope that Balthazar wouldn't be upset that she'd asked another question on top of Dave's. _

_"Albus Dumbledore is one of the oldest currently living wizards in England. He has many experiences that Dave should feel privileged to learn from."_ _Balthazar was answering Becky, but had somehow managed to cast a warning glare in Dave's direction._

* * *

That had been all Balthazar had said about Albus Dumbledore but even from his seat at the Ravenclaw table Dave could tell what had drawn his master to this wizard. Like Professor McGonagall and Balthazar, Albus Dumbledore could command attention with a look. But like Veronica, Professor Dumbledore also projected a sense of gentleness and honesty.

"Welcome, Welcome to a new year at Hogwarts!" The Hogwarts Headmaster addressed his students. "Before we begin the banquet, I would like to say a few words and as some of them are very serious, I think it best to get it out of the way before you become befuddled by our excellent feast. As you will all be aware after their search of the Hogwarts Express, our school is presently playing host to some of the Dementors of Azkaban, who are here in Ministry of Magic Business. " Dave looked to Valarie with a pleading glance, he didn't understand half of that last sentence.

"Later." She hissed trying to catch every word of Dumbledore's speech.

"They are stationed at every entrance to the grounds." Dumbledore continued. "And while they are with us, I must make it plain that nobody id to leave school without permission. Dementors are not to be fooled by tricks or disguises or even, _invisibility cloaks._" The Headmaster paused to look at a table whose students were decorated in red and gold. "It is not in the nature of a Dementor to understand pleading or excuses. I therefore warn each and every one of you to give them no reason to harm you. I look to the Prefects and our new Head Boy and Girl to make sure that no student runs foul of the Dementors." Dave still had no idea what the heck a Dementor was, but he continued to listen to Professor Dumbledore for fear of missing something important.

"On a happier note, I am pleased to welcome two new teachers to our ranks this year. Firstly, Professor Lupin, who has kindly consented to fill the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher." There was a collective applause from all of the students as Professor Lupin stood. Dave could see that Professor Lupin wasn't as finely dressed as his fellow professors, but the man was smiling just the same. "As to our second new appointment," Professor Dumbledore spoke as the applause for Professor Lupin began to die out. "Well I am sorry to tell you that Professor Kettleburn, our Care of Magical Creatures teacher, retired at the end of last year in order to enjoy more time with his remaining limbs. However I am delighted to say that this place will be filled by none other than Rubeus Hagrid, who has agreed to take on this teaching job in addition to his gamekeeper duties." Hagrid, the Half-Giant Dave had met earlier waved from his seat. "Lastly I'd like to address one more matter. As I'm sure you all noticed our Sorting Ceremony was different than the past years. We are welcoming a transfer student for the United States, his name is Dave Stutler. Mr. Stutler could you please stand up?" Rising from his seat at the Ravenclaw table, Dave gave an awkward half-wave as hundreds of eyes were on him. "Not only is Mr. Stutler an American, he is also not a wizard. He is known as a Sorcerer. I'm sure you will have many question about Dave and Sorcery, so please feel free to ask either him or a member of our staff. While Dave's magic may be different then our own, we must remember that he is here to learn. Well, I think that's everything of importance, let the feast begin!"

* * *

**A/N: Thank you Penguin Lord0029 for another review and for pointing out that I accidentally uploaded the wrong Chapter! I hope everyone enjoyed Chapter 4! Please continue to Favorite, Follow, Review, Read and Enjoy!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Before you read Chapter 5 please make sure you've read the correct version of Chapter 4. It seemed that through an error I accidentally uploaded a chapter from another story instead of Chapter 4. Everything should be fixed now, and I will try my hardest to make certain it doesn't happen again! Please enjoy Chapter 5!**

* * *

As Dave sat back down he was marveled by the feast of food that had suddenly appeared up and down the Ravenclaw table. Helping himself to small portions of everything he could get his hands on, Dave cast his eyes on Valarie once more.

"What is a Dementor?" He asked in a low voice.

"They are the creatures that guard Azkaban." She explained like this was something Dave should have already known.

"Which is?" Valarie was about to snap back at him with a comment, then she remembered Dave was a sorcerer not a wizard.

"I'm sorry I forgot, it's like you're a muggle-born." She commented off-handedly as she poured herself a glass of pumpkin juice.

"What's a Muggle..."

"I don't want to confuse you." She interrupted. "Azkaban is the wizard prison. You have to do some pretty horrible things to end up there. Dementors are the creatures that guard the prison. We saw them on the train ride in. Well I did, you were asleep. They are pretty hard to describe...Like living smoke...these swirling black capes...and these skeletal hands...I don't want to think about it." She shuddered. "Let's just say you _do not _want to be caught by one of those guys." Nodding to show he understood, Dave tried to think back to the rest of Professor Dumbledore's speech. Trying to remember what other bit of it he hadn't understood. The Ministry of Magic was obviously the wizard's Government so Dave didn't have any questions about that. He wanted to ask about invisibility cloaks, but was sure he'd come across that information soon enough on his own.

"Can you explain what a muggle is?" Dave decided.

"A muggle is a non-magical person who is born to non-magical parents. Not to be confused with a squib, that's a non-magical person born to magical parents." Valarie explained biting through a piece of delicious looking roast beef.

"Okay." Dave nodded. The words she was saying were making sense, but Dave could tell that being with these wizards for the next three years was going to be like living on a whole other planet. "What was that other word you said on the train...the one you used when you were talking about Slytherin...you said they were mostly something bloods..." Dave tried to remember as he took his first sip of pumpkin juice. He was surprised by how similar the taste was to apple juice but it was much earthier with flecks of cinnamon floating around in it.

"Pureblood." Valarie repeated the word she'd used earlier. "Some wizards think that blood purity is important." She explained dropping her voice so that none of the other Ravenclaws could hear her. "A pureblood witch or wizard comes from a long line of all wizards or squibs. To be considered pureblood a witch or wizard can't have any muggles in their family. And then there are half-bloods, like me." Valarie paused to take another bite of food and Dave was grateful because it gave him time to process what she'd already said. "I'm considered a half-blood because my mom, a pureblood witch, married a muggle-born wizard. Anyone who doesn't have two Muggle parents is considered a half-blood."

"That's a lot to keep track of." Dave felt bad for making her explain all of that to him. He could barley understand it, let alone explain it to someone else.

"That's why most folks don't bother with it." Valarie shrugged. Dave got the impression there was something she wasn't telling him, but decided not to worry about it. Dave tried to remain quiet through the rest of the meal so Valarie could eat in piece, but after twenty or so minutes of silence a fresh batch of questions sprung to Dave's mind.

"So, where do I get a blue and grey tie?" Dave questioned.

"You've already got some." Valarie pointed to Dave's chest where his previously black tie had been transformed into a blue and silver one. Dave also noticed a new crest had fixed itself to the left side of his sweater vest. "All your uniforms transform and become house specific uniforms once you're sorted. I'm sure you'd like to know which houses are which color." Valarie smiled as she guessed her friend's next question.

"If you don't mind. I know I've already asked you like a hundred questions." Dave admitted guiltily.

"No, no, it's alright." She continued to smile. "See that table across from us? That's the Hufflepuffs. Their house colors are yellow and black. The table behind them, is Gryffindor. Their colors are Scarlet and Gold. Ravenclaw, our colors are suppose to be blue and bronze, but our uniforms are blue and silver. Lastly, the table behind us is Slytherin. Their colors are emerald and silver."

"Thank you Valarie." Dave smiled himself. "I promise I'll stop asking questions and you can eat your dinner."


	6. Chapter 6

"I really appreciate you doing all of this for me." Dave said to Valarie after she insisted on showing him the way to the Ravenclaw common room. "I'm sure you must have your own friends you want to be getting back to." He said as they began to climb the spiral staircase of Ravenclaw tower.

"Well actually..." Valarie responded looking embarrassed. "I don't exactly have a lot of friends. None honestly." She admitted looking away from Dave. "No one wants to be friends with the girl who's filled her head with useless information."

"Oh that's not true!" Dave tried to comfort her. "Speaking as one know it all to another, I find your useless information fascinating." Dave smiled. Valarie peeked up at Dave through her eyelashes. "I-I mean think of how much you've taught me about wizard stuff already!"

"Dave you don't have to..."

"I'm not! I'm not just saying that! You've been really helpful Val." He hoped she wouldn't mind the sudden nickname but Dave somehow sensed that it was okay. "Besides the sorting hat said...well it told me that I belong in Ravenclaw because I held knowledge above all. So the way I see it, we're supposed to be know it alls."

"You're very kind Dave." Valarie smiled back to him at last. "No one's ever called me Val before. Not even my parents. I like it." The two continued up the spiraled stairs and eventually reached a door, Valarie swum to door open and Dave followed her through a small passageway which led to another door. Fixed in the center of the second door was a large brass eagle doorknocker. "This is one of my favorite things about being a Ravenclaw." Valarie squealed. "The other three houses, have passwords u must know in order to get into their common rooms."

"Let me guess, not us?"

"Ravenclaws have to answer a riddle to get in! They change randomly, it could be once a week or sometimes three or four times a day."

"Riddles? Of course. My Uncle would be thrilled." Dave nodded. He was surprised how much it already hurt to think about Balthazar and Veronica knowing that he wouldn't see them for another three years.

"Go on, knock!" Valarie urged him. She wanted to give Dave a chance to answer the riddle on his own and if they didn't hurry the other Ravenclaws would be entering the corridor soon. Suspecting he'd never be able to solve the riddle anyway, Dave reached out and knocked on the doorknocker reluctantly. The eagle doorknocker's voice began to fill the passageway.

"I run and run, never tire. Down and down, never up. What am I?"

"Hmm that's a tricky one." Valarie said thinking hard.

"I know this! I actually know this!" Dave exclaimed with excitement.

* * *

_"What are you two watching?" Becky asked as she and Veronica returned to the lab, their arms weighted down with shopping bags. Becky had been working hard trying to integrate Veronica into modern times. She like it because she'd also been learning so much about where Veronica and Balthazar had come from. _

_"Balthazar's got me watching some old episodes of the Batman show from the 60's apparently they are all on Youtube!" Dave answered with feigned excitement. The apprentice willingly leapt forward to help the woman unload their arms. Pausing the video the two men had been watching, Balthazar rose to his feet offering his own assistance as well. _

_"I never pegged you as a Batman fan Balthazar." Becky said as she shook her arms, which had grown sore from carrying so many bags. "Though I guess Dave is kind of like your Robin." _

_"I'm nothing like Robin!" Dave countered._

_"That's true, because at least Robin can solve the Riddler's riddles." Balthazar chuckled. _

_"Ok explain to me how Adam West got The United Nations Security System for two other clues whose answers were Eggs and applesauce." Dave groaned. Veronica, who didn't exactly know what the other three were talking about, tried to help the young sorcerer out._

_"Oh Balthazar leave the poor boy alone, those riddles do sound difficult. How about this David, I run and run, never tire. Down and down, never up. Do you know what I am?"_

_"A river!" Becky announced excitedly. "Sorry that was just for Dave wasn't it."_

_"It's alright Becky." Balthazar smiled, "You can be our Batgirl. Robin and I need someone who can actually solve riddles." The sorcerer cast a look in Dave's direction but the apprentice knew it was only a joke._

* * *

"A river." Dave answered the brass eagle as he shook the memory from his mind. In acceptance of Dave's correct answer, the door to the Ravenclaw common room swung open.

"You got it!" Valarie remarked. "Come on, we've only got a few minutes before Robert comes in with the first years, then you'll have to listen to his welcome speech." Dave followed Valarie into the common room. It was a wide circular room with arched windows. All around the walls, long lengths of blue and bronze were draped. The dome type ceiling was painted with constellations from the night sky. Tables, chairs and bookcases were scattered throughout the floor space and Dave was in awe.

"This place is amazing." Dave gasped staring around.

"Now you know why I wanted you to see it before it filled with first years." Valarie explained. "I'll sit with you until they get up here."

"Who's Robert?" Dave asked wondering how long it would take for Valarie to get sick of his constant questioning.

"He's one of the Ravenclaw prefects. Which judging by that look on your face you didn't have at your old school. One boy and one girl is chosen for from every fifth year class to act as prefects. It's their job to help the students in their house to stay out of trouble. They walk the halls at night with the professors to make sure no one's out of bounds, and they try to guide younger students."

"So they're kind of like hall monitors?" Dave said with understanding. "Which judging by the look on _your_ face you've never had." Hogwarts was defiantly going to take some getting used to. At least when Dave had first started working with Balthazar, he didn't have to explain a whole other world to the thousand year old sorcerer.

"Come along, come along!" A cheery voice spoke as the common room door swung open once more. "Now first years please gather in the center of the room, that way your older housemates can still get up to their dormitories. Dave waited until all of the first year students had gathered in the center of the room, before standing and joining the back of the group. "There you are Mr. Stutler! I was beginning to worry you'd gotten lost!" Robert the prefect said in a friendly enough tone before adressing the group at large. "Congratulations again to all of you! I'm Prefect Robert Hilliard and I'm delighted to welcome you to Ravenclaw house. Our emblem is the eagle, which soars where others cannot climb; our house colors are blue and bronze, and our common room is found here at the top of Ravenclaw Tower. The arched windows here look down at the school grounds, no other house in the school has such stunning views. Without wishing to boasr, this is the house where the cleverest witches and wizards live. Our founder, Rowena Ravenclaw," Robert paused to gesture towards a large marble statue of Rowena Ravenclaw that stood near the door. Dave had been marveled by so many of the other things in the common room, he hadn't spotted the statue at first, but squinting over the heads of the younger students, the young sorcerer couldn't help but notice how similar Rowena looked to Veronica. He decided not to dwell on it as Robert was still rambling possibly important information.

"...at first the eagle may seem intimidating, don't worry! We Ravenclaws learn quickly and you will soon enjoy the challenges the door sets. You'll like out Head of House, Professor Flitwick. People often underestimate him, because he's really tiny and he's got a squeaky voice, but he's the best and most knowledgeable Charms Master alive today. His office door is always open to any Ravenclaw with a problem and if you're in a real state he'll get out these delicious little cupcakes he keeps in a tin in his desk drawer and makes them do a little dance for you. In fact, it's worth pretending you're in a real state just to see them jive. I think that's nearly everything. Oh yes, our house ghost is the Grey Lady, the rest of the school thinks she never speaks, but she'll talk to Ravenclaws. She's particularly useful if you're lost or you've mislaid something. Alright that is absolutely everything, You'll find your dormitories up the stairs with your names scrawled onto plaques secured to each door." Robert turned and led the group of eleven year olds up the stairs once more.


	7. Chapter 7

"Alright let's see, Stutler, Stutler..." Dave mumbled to himself as he followed after the first years, searching for his name.

"You won't be with them." Valarie tugged at Dave's shirt sleeve."They'll only be in first year dormitories. What year will you be transferring in as?"

"You know," The apprentice said, struck with sudden realization. "Balthazar never mentioned it. That's my uncle's name. He's in charge of my sorcery education so he spoke with Professor Dumbledore about my transfer credits and magical equivalents and all that."

"Well, we'll just have to read every door until we find you then!" Dave and Valarie studied all the plaques marked for second year students and were half way through the third year dormitories when Dave found his name. Painted in blue on a bronze plaque was his name, David Stutler.

"I've found it!" Dave said to his friend who was the next door over.

"Ooh who are your roommates?" Valarie asked leaning over. After reading the first two names on the list a broad grin began to spread across Val's face. "You're with me."

"Wait? How is that possible?"

"Ravenclaw has co-ed dorms." Valarie explained. "All of the dormitories are mixed, boys and girls. I guess it might be weird, but Rowena felt boys and girls could learn from each other and that separating witches and wizards would only further the barriers between the genders."

"That's progressive." Dave replied not sure how he felt about his new living arrangements.

"Especially for her time." Valarie shrugged. "But every house had its secrets, come on inside I can't wait for you to meet the others." Once inside Valarie introduced Dave to his fellow roommates. It turned out there were four other roommates in Dave and Valarie's dorm. There was Jason Huntington a brown haired boy who greeted the two newcomers with a polite, but quiet "hello". He was the only student already occupying the room when the sorcerer and his friend entered. The three of them were soon joined by two chatty girls who introduced themselves as Padma Patil and Elizabeth Mkapa. They seemed nice enough, but Dave was under the impression the two girls would not want to be his friend. Their last roommate, Patrick Fincher, entered the dorm as the others were readying for bed. He seemed to Dave more socially inclined than the others, but not stuck up or selfish. Overall the apprentice felt he could have wound up with much worse roommates. At least none of them wore leather trench coats that smelt of sage moss like a certain sorcerer he knew. The apprentice closed his eyes and tried to force his thoughts of home out of his head.

For a split second, when Dave awoke the next morning, he thought he was back home in his lab. Laying with his eyes closed; Dave imagined Veronica in the lab's kitchenette humming an ancient song while she tried to use the Keurig machine Balthazar had bought. He imagined he and Becky squished together on the couch after another night of staying in the lab, too tired to return to the tiny apartment they shared. Balthazar would stumble in, half awake, with some joke about Becky and Dave having their own place to be, before gently explaining to Veronica for the hundredth time how the coffee pot works.

Heaving a deep sigh and coming back to reality, Dave sat up, surprised to see that he was the first of his roommates to awaken. Moving as quietly as possible, Dave got out of bed and lifted up the lid to his Hogwarts trunk. Gathering a fresh uniform the young man suddenly wished he'd thought to ask Valarie where the nearest bathroom was. Hoping that at least one other male student was around to ask for the closest shower, the young sorcerer took his clothes and left for the common room. _Of course, there's no one._ The Ravenclaw groaned when he spied an empty common room. Then Dave had a sudden thought. _Locator spell._ It was one of the few things Balthazar had taught him that the apprentice had grasped rather easily. Stepping out into the common room, down the corridor, and following the spiraled staircase, Dave cast the locator spell and was relieved to find a bathroom on the fifth floor near the base of Ravenclaw Tower. With clean skin and fresh clothes Dave climbed back up the tower.

"What are the chilliest twelve inches in the world?" The eagle door knocker asked upon his return. Dave was surprised that he knew the answer to this riddle as well.

* * *

_"What are the chilliest twelve inches in the world?" Adam West's Batman read aloud to Burt Ward's Robin the Boy Wonder. Once the women's shopping had been unloaded, Veronica and Becky had joined Dave and Balthazar in their 60's Batman marathon. _

_"Cold feet!" Veronica shouted excitedly as Batman and Robin fumbled to solve the riddle. _

_"Here's a riddle for you." Dave paused the video and smiled mischievously. "What do Batman and Balthazar have in common?" _

_"Both our names start with 'B' and we both kick ass." Balthazar replied before reaching for the play button, but Dave stopped him._

_"Nope. You both have cold feet!" The apprentice burst out laughing. Even Becky couldn't help but giggle herself._

* * *

"Cold feet." Dave told the eagle as he fondly remembered his master's original aversion to marriage. Back in his dormitory, Dave saw that Jason and Elizabeth were up and dressed. "Good morning!" He greeted both of them cheerily as he packed his dirty laundry away and made his bed. Elizabeth ignored him and continued to go about her morning routine. Jason on the other hand wished David a good morning in returned and asked if he needed any help finding the Great Hall.

"Yeah man some help would be great!" Dave thanked his roommate. "But um, do you mind if we wait for Valarie? She was really nice helping me find my way around yesterday and I'd hate to ditch her."

"Um, sure we could do that." Jason agreed. The wizard wouldn't admit it to Dave at the time but Jason had a longstanding crush on Valarie. The two waited long after Patrick, Padma and Elizabeth had left for breakfast. Lucky for them it was still relatively early by the time Valarie woke and dressed.

* * *

**A/N: SkyeDragonAzure I agree! It's always bothered me when authors say the Ravenclaw colors are Blue and Silver! I think the misconception stems from the films and the Merchandise. Everything at Wizarding World of Harry Potter is Blue and Silver and even the film characters wear it. But Pottermore confirms that the colors are in fact, Blue and Bronze! T****hank you very much for your review I appreciate reviews so very much! **

**To everyone else Please continue reading, reviewing, favoriting and following. It makes me so happy to know that there are people out there enjoying my stories!**


	8. Chapter 8

"What classes did your Uncle sign you up for?" Valarie asked once Professor Flitwick had given Dave, Jason and Valarie their schedules.

"Let's see..." Dave murmured as he looked down at the piece of parchment the Charms professor had given him.

**Monday**

Care of Magical Creatures (All Houses)

Study of Ancient Runes (All Houses)

Transfigurations (Ravenclaw & Hufflepuff)

Defense Against the Dark Arts (Ravenclaw & Hufflepuff)

**Tuesday**

Herbology (Ravenclaw & Gryffindor)

Transfigurations (Ravenclaw & Hufflepuff)

Potions (Ravenclaw & Hufflepuff)

**Wednesday**

Care of Magical Creatures (All Houses)

Study of Ancient Runes (All Houses)

Defense Against the Dark Arts (Ravenclaw & Hufflepuff)

Charms (Ravenclaw and Gryffindor)

Arithmancy (All Houses)

**Thursday**

Astronomy (Ravenclaw & Slytherin)

Herbology (Ravenclaw & Gryffindor)

Potions (Ravenclaw & Hufflepuff)

History of Magic (All Houses)

**Friday**

History of Magic (All Houses)

Care of Magical Creatures (All Houses)

Charms (Ravenclaw &Gryffindor)

Astronomy (Ravenclaw & Slytherin)

Jason had just finished explaining to Dave that every student took Charms, Astronomy, History of Magic, Potions, Transfigurations, Defense Against the Dark Arts, & Herbology until their sixth year. Mentally crossing those classes off his list, Dave replied to Valarie's question.

"Looks like I've got Care of Magical Creatures, Study of Ancient Runes, and Arithmancy." He read from the parchment in his hands.

"I've signed up for Care of Magical Creatures as well." Valarie seemed satisfied with her choice. Though I've got Divination instead of Ancient Runes and Muggle Studies instead of Arithmancy."

"Yeah any idea what that is?" Dave turned to the two thirteen year olds for help.

"It's about the magical properties of numbers." Valarie openly shared from her bank of knowledge. Dave sighed with relief. At least Balthazar had managed to find one class where his apprentice would feel comfortable. Arithmancy was probably the closest Dave was going to get to wizard physics.

"I'm taking it too, remind me on Wednesday and I'll show you where the classroom is." Jason told Dave kindly.

"Thank you Jason." Dave poured himself a glass of the pumpkin juice he'd enjoyed so much the night before. "Would one of you guys mind showing me the way to the tower after breakfast? I promise I will figure out how to get around myself soon."

"Why don't we both show you?" Jason suggested. Valarie had never heard her roommate of three years sound so eager about something. "I mean we call have Care of Magical Creatures afterwards so we might as well all go together." So after breakfast Dave, Valarie and Jason went back up to the Ravenclaw Tower to gather everything they'd need for their morning classes.

"So the elective classes and History of Magic are taught with all four houses, but the rest of our classes are separated by house?"

"Correct." Valarie smiled. She could tell it was hard for Dave to understand a whole new system of education, but he was trying hard to be adaptive. Valarie and Jason continued to answer Dave's many questions as the trio walked down the sloping lawns to the edge of the Forbidden Forest. Dave easily recognized Hagrid, who waving at the approaching students from the door of his hut.

"C'mon, now, get a move on!" Hagrid called to his class. "Got a real treat for yeh today! Great lesson Comin' up! Everyone here?" Hagrid paused to count the students who were now mostly gathered by his home. "Right, follow me!" Dave gulped fearing that Hagrid was about to lead the class into the supposedly dangerous forest, but breathed a sigh of relief as he followed his friends just inches into the tree line. Gathering in clumps of three to five students, the Care of Magical Creatures class had been led by Hagrid to a large empty enclosure. "Everyone gather 'round the fence here!" Hagrid instructed, waving at some of the students who stood too far for his preference. "That's it, make sure yeh can see...now, firs' thing yeh'll want to do is open yer books..."

"How?" A platinum blonde Slytherin boy snapped in a tone that Dave took to be disrespectful.

"Eh?" Either Hagrid didn't understand the boy's question or he wanted him to ask it more politely.

"How do we open our books?" The blonde repeated. He took out his copy of the required text; _The Monster Book of Monsters,_ which he had bound shut with a length of rope.

"Hasn't...hasn't anyone bin able ter open their books?" Hagrid looked around at the class with a disappointed look.

"Um Professor Hagrid..." Dave closed his eyes and half raised his arm awkwardly.

"Eh? It was Stutler right?" Hagrid asked to Sorcerer. Dave opened his eyes and nodded, lowering his hand at the same time. "Did you have a question?"

"No s-sir." Dave shook his head. "I..I've been able to open my book." The other kids in the class began mumbling at Dave's statement, some of them even casting dark looks his way. "All you have to do," Dave mumbled as he pulled his copy of the textbook from his bag, "Is stroke the spine." Demonstrating, Dave removed the stunning charm he'd placed on the book as ran a hand down the spine. The book shivered and fell open in the young sorcerer's hand.

* * *

_Dave, Veronica and Balthazar stepped into Flourish and Blotts to purchase the school books the apprentice would need for his upcoming school year. Dave had been mostly enthralled by the shop's window display. A large iron cadge that held hundreds of copies of the same book. Torn pages were flying everywhere as the books grappled with each other, locked in furious wrestling matches. Dave glanced down at his booklist, hoping the snapping books were not on there. _

_"Hogwarts?" The shop manager asked as he saw the three enter Flourish and Blotts. _

_"Yes." Dave nodded. The manager was surprised by Dave's accent, which was unfamiliar to him, but stepped forward with a pair of very thick gloves to retrieve a vengeful book from the iron cage._

_"I'm never stocking these again." The manager complained as he fought to pull one of the books from a particularly violent scuffle. "It's been bedlam! I thought we'd seen the worst when we bought two hundred copies of the Invisible Book of Invisibility cost a fortune, and we never found them." The manager sighed as he held a snapping copy of The Monster Book of Monsters out to Dave at arm's length. The apprentice didn't take the book, he instead watched in with frightened eyes. Sensing David's trepidation Veronica gently lifted the violent book from the manger's hands. Relieved that his services were no longer required the shop manager returned to what he'd previously been doing. _

_"All this book needs is a gentle stroke." Veronica said softly before demonstrating to David and Balthazar how to open the book. "All you need to do when you're not reading the book, is cast a stunning charm."_

* * *

"How'd yeh know how ter open yer book?" Hagrid asked Dave, obviously impressed.

"Ah my Aunt showed me. I guess she used to have a copy herself." Dave explained.

"Oh how silly we've all been!" The blonde boy we'd been rude to Hagrid before sneered. "We should have _stroked_ them. Why didn't we guess?"

"I-I thought they were funny." Hagrid looked around the class now uncertain.

"Oh Tremendously funny!" The blonde boy interrupted once more. "Really witty, giving us books that try and rip our hands off?"

"Who is this kid?" Dave whispered to his friends. Valarie and Jason didn't answer because a boy with dark messy hair snapped at the blonde boy.

"Shut up Malfoy!"

"The rude blonde is Draco Malfoy and the dark haired one who just told him off his Harry Potter." Jason explained quietly.

"Right then," Hagrid clapped his hands, trying to gain everyone's attention again. "So...so yeh've got yer books an' an' now yeh need the Magical Creatures. Yeah. So I'll go an' get em'. Hang on." With that Hagrid entered the forest and disappeared from sight.

"God this place is going to the dogs." Draco Malfoy complained once the professor was out of earshot. "That oaf teaching classes, my father'll have a fit when I tell him..."

"Shut up Malfoy." Harry Potter repeated.

"Careful, Potter, there's a dementor behind you!" Malfoy teased. _dementor_. That's the name of the creature Dumbledore had mentioned at dinner, the ones Valarie had said he'd missed on the train. Harry must have had a negative experience with them while Dave had slept easily through their interruptions. Judging by the slightly fearful look Harry Potter had given, dementors were something Dave wanted to steer clear of. There was several "oohs" and "Ahhs" escaping from many of the students, causing Dave to divert his attention from Harry, to the enclosure. Clopping towards the class were twelve of what Dave could only describe as half-eagle, half- horses. They had the bodies, hind legs, and tails of horses, but the front legs, wings and heads of eagles. Each of the creatures wore a thick leather collar around its neck, which was attached to a long chain and the ends of all of these were held in one of Hagrid's oversized hands.


	9. Chapter 9

"Hippogriffs!" Hagrid proclaimed loudly to the class. Hagrid tethered each of the Hippogriffs to the fence closest to the class, and glanced up. "Beau'iful aren' they?" Dave could sort of see what Hagrid meant. The hippogriffs had shiny coats that changed smoothly from feathers to hair, each of them a different color from gray to bronze to black. "So..." Hagrid rubbed his hands together excitedly. "If you wan' ter come a bit nearer..." Dave stepped forward eagerly. Care of Magical Creatures was rapidly beginning to rival Physics as his favorite school subject. It didn't escape his notice that, with the exception of Harry and his two friends, none of the other students moved. "Now firs' thing you gotta know abou' hippogriffs is, they're proud. Easily offended, hippogriffs are. Don't never insult one, 'cause it might be the last thing yeh do. Yeh always wait fer the hippogriff ter make the firs' move. It's polite, see? Yeh walk towards him, and yeh bow, an' yeh wait. If he bows back, yeh're allowed ter touch him. If he doesn' bow, then get away from him sharpish 'cause those talons hurt. Right, who wants ter go first?" Most of the class backed farther away at his question.

"I'd like to take a crack at it." Dave admitted sheepishly. He could see that even Valarie and Jason thought he was crazy for volunteering. Hagrid on the other hand couldn't be happier to have a ready volunteer. Dave hopped over the fence, as Hagrid had instructed him to do. At the same time the half-giant untied the chain attached to a gray hippogriff and slipped the leather collar off of him.

"David, this is Buckbeak."Hagrid introduced. Dave smiled at the steely grey bird that reminded him so much of Balthazar's favorite travel companion, the Crystler Eagle. "Yeh've got eye contract, now try not ter blink, hippogriffs don' trust yeh if yeh blink too much." Dave's eyes began to water and he began to realize how hard it is _not_ to blink when you put effort into it. But he decided it was probably better to have leaking eyes than maimed by the sharp talons on the hippogriff. "That's it! That's it!" Hagrid encouraged him. "Now bow." Putting possibly too much faith in a man he'd only just met, Dave did as he was told and bowed to Buckbeak, peaking up through his eyelashes. The hippogriff was just staring at the sorcerer, not moving. "Right, back a way David, easy does it." Dave moved his left foot a half step back, but to both he and Hagrid's surprise, Buckbeak bent his birdlike front knees and sank into a bow of his own. "Well done David!" Hagrid said enthusiastically. "Right, yeh can touch him! Pat his beak, go on!" Genuinely excited by Hagrid's suggestion, Dave moved slowly towards the hippogriff and gently stroked its beak. Buckbeack closed his eyes enjoying the attention. "I reckon he might let you ride him." Hagrid suggested still elated by how well things had turned out.

Curious to see if flying on a hippogriff was different than a steel eagle, Dave carefully mounted Buckbeak behind the wing joints as Hagrid had instructed. Without warning the twelve-foot wings flapped open on either side and soon the pair were air-born. The Hippogriff's wings fluttered more evenly than the steel eagle making for a much smoother flight. Though, given the choice, Dave would always choose ground transportation over flying. Buckbeak flew him once around the enclosure and then headed back to the ground.

"Good work, David! Okay who else wants to go?" Amazed by Dave's success, Harry asked if he could try next. His bow was received by Buckbeak immediately and soon the dark haired boy was flying just as the sorcerer had done previously. Dave noticed that the Gryffindor boy didn't seem as comfortable on the Hippogriff as he had felt, but the riding attempt was successful none the less. Now that two students had successfully managed to ride the hippogriff, the rest of the class climbed over the fence, eager for their own chances. Malfoy and two of his thuggish friends had taken Buckbeak from Harry and the disdainful blonde had managed to earn a bow from the hippogriff.

"This is very easy." Malfoy boasted as he stroked Buckbeak. "I knew it must have been, if Potter could do it. I bet you're not dangerous at all, are you? Are you, you great ugly brute?" What happened next was so quick, many of the students missed it. Malfoy let out a high-pitched scream and the next moment Hagrid was wresting Buckbeak back into his collar as he strained to get at Malfoy, who lay curled in the grass, blood covering his robes. "I'm dying!" Malfoy cried dramatically. Dave, as someone who'd seen his mentor literally die in front of him, rolled his eyes. People who were actually dying didn't have enough energy to shriek like that. "I'm dying, look at me! It's killed me!"

"Yer not dying!" Professor Hagrid seemed to share the same sentiment as Dave. "Someone help me, gotta get him outta here..." A Gryffindor girl with bushy brown hair rushed forward to hold open the enclosure's gate as Hagrid carried Malfoy effortlessly.

"They should fire him straight away!" A Slytherin girl wept dramatically.

"It was that Malfoy kid's fault." Dave snorted.

"I'm going to see if he's okay!" The girl snapped at him before running after Hagrid and Draco.

"He's going to be fine." Harry said certainly as most of the class began to wonder off towards the castle. "Madam Pomfrey can mend cuts in about a second."

"That was a really bad thing to happen in Hagrid's first class though wasn't it?" Harry's redheaded friend sounded worried. "Trust Malfoy to mess things up for him..."

"They wouldn't fire him, would they?" The girl with bushy brown hair looked equally as worried. Most of the class had left now and only Valarie, Jason, Dave, Harry and his two friends stood outside the hippogriff enclosure.

"I don't see why they'd fire him." Dave reasoned. "Professor Hagrid didn't do anything wrong."

"You're the sorcerer aren't you?" The bushy haired girl's face immediately transformed from worry to excitement.

"Yeah. Dave Stutler." Dave nodded placing his hand out for the girl to shake. She took it with a sweet smile.

"I'm Hermione Granger. I'd love to ask you a few questions about sorcery when you have to time."

"Sure." Dave nodded again as his hand dropped to his side. "Ask me anything."

"Shouldn't have said that mate." The red headed boy cringed. "Ron Weasley by the way." He introduced.

"It's nice to meet all of you." Dave smiled. "Well we have a few minutes before we have to get to our next class, what sort of questions do you have Hermione?"

"Well...hmm." Hermione's face contorted as the group started walking towards the castle. It was clear to Ron and Harry that she wasn't struggling to think of questions, but rather trying to decided which to ask first.


	10. Chapter 10

"I'll start with a simple question, what type of wand do you have? What is the wood, the core, and how many inches is it?" Hermione asked excitedly as she, Dave and the others slowly walked the grounds towards the castle.

"Well, I actually don't have a wand." Dave said slowly as he tried to remember what Balthazar had said about a wizard's wand. At the same time,he retrieved Merlin's ring from his pocket, he had stowed it there before approaching Buckbeak. "This, is my sorcerer's ring." Dave said handing his ring to Hermione, knowing the girl would want to examine it closely. "Sorcerers don't use wands to channel our magic. We use rings. Now from what I understand from my Uncle and Valarie, your wands are very symbolic. The woods has a meaning, and the center..."

"Core. The inside of a wizard or witches wand is called a core." Hermione corrected him before passing the ring to Harry and Ron so they could gain a closer look themselves.

"Right yeah the core." Dave nodded. "Well a sorcerer's ring doesn't have a core, that is the main difference between a wizard and a sorcerer. We can cast most of the same spells as you and for the most part, we have the same abilities." Dave explained as Jason, who was the last to study Dave's ring, handed it back to him.

"What brings you to Hogwarts?" Harry asked, surprising all of them with his interest in the sorcerer. Dave explained to the group that Professor Dumbledore was an old friend of Uncle Balthazar's and that he'd come to stay at Hogwarts while his Aunt and Uncle went on a three year sabbatical. The question and answers session continued as the group of six neared the castle. Dave was surprised to discovered that despite their nearly seven year age difference between himself and the others, they'd accepted him without much of a second thought.

"Oh no!" Hermione frowned suddenly. "We'd better hurry or we'll be late for our next class."

"I have...Study of Ancient Runes." Dave said looking up from his schedule.

"Me as well!" Hermione's face lit up once more. As none of the other were taking Study of Ancient Runes, they parted ways and Hermione continued firing questions at the apprentice. As that walked Dave chuckled to himself. _Is this how people feel when they talk to me?_ He listened intently and answered the girl's questions to the best of his ability, but if he was being honest, Dave was relieved when their professor finally entered the room. Hermione was smart, maybe too smart, and she'd asked Dave questioned that he himself hadn't thought of in a long time.

"So Dave, how was your first day of classes?" Valarie asked when she joined him and Jason at the dinner table that night.

"It was...surprisingly overwhelming." Dave answered honestly thinking about what he'd thought the classes would be like. "The classes are much more organized than my lessons with my Uncle, but at least they don't seem to be boring."

"It's still early in the year."Valarie shrugged. "Wait until mid-October."

"But we're third years now." Jason pointed out as the evening's dinner appeared on the table. "This is the year we get to put our training wands away, and start learning some real magic!"

"You guys still have training wands?" Dave asked scooping food on his plate.

"No!" Valarie and Jason exclaimed at the same time. "It's just an expression." His female friend explained. "See when a witch or wizard is very young they do get a training wand; but once your of school age, you get the wand you'll carry around for the rest of your life."

"Oh, that ah...that makes sense." Dave replied awkwardly. "So...what's the plan for tomorrow?"


End file.
